New Immigration Policies this Summer

It has been a busy summer and several important immigration policies were announced. Here are the details

1. Study while Working

• Workers who have held a work permit since or had applied to extend their work permit on or before June 7, 2023 are able to study without a study permit until the end of the work permit. This includes programs that are beyond 6 months which otherwise would require a study permit.
• Please note, however, that working while you attend full-time studies could disqualify your work experience in Canada as being counted for CRS points under the Express Entry system.

2. The New Ukrainian Permanent Residence Program

• The Minister has announced that the new program will be open on October 23, 2023.
• Ukrainian nationals that have family members (spouses/common-law partners, children, grandchildren, parents, and grandparents) who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents can apply for permanent residency under this program.

3. Category-based draws for Express Entry

• Category-based draws for Express Entry have started. The government is having separate draws for each category. Recent CRS scores for the French-speaking stream was 435, heath-care occupations at 463, STEM occupations at 486, and trades occupations at 388. The last general draw was 505 points.

• For more information about category-based draws, check out the recording of our last webinar at www.lmlawgroup.com/videos